Agency Information Collection Activity Under OMB Review |
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Special Collection: COVID-19
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Nadine Pembleton
Federal Transit Administration
5 March 2021
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 42 (Friday, March 5, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13015-13016]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-04598]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
[FTA Docket No. FTA 2021-0002]
Agency Information Collection Activity Under OMB Review
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.
ACTION: Notice of request for emergency OMB approval.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this
notice announces that the Information Collection Requirements (ICRs)
abstracted below have been forwarded to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for review for an emergency approval of a new, mandatory
information collection. The FTA requests OMB approve this collection
within 15 days. The FTA is collecting this information to inform FTA
actions to support the transit industry's COVID-19 recovery efforts.
The ICRs describe the nature of the information collection and their
expected burdens.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before March 22, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 15 days of publication of
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. All comments received
are part of the public record. Comments will generally be posted
without change. Upon receiving the requested six-month emergency
approval by OMB, FTA will follow the normal PRA procedures to obtain
extended approval for this proposed information collection.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Candace Key, Office of Transit Safety
and Oversight--System Safety Division, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Mail
Stop TSO-10, Washington, DC 20590 (202) 366-1783 or
candace.key@dot.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FTA requests public comment on this
information collection, including (a) whether the proposed collection
of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions
of the agency; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost); (c) ways for FTA to enhance the quality,
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (d) ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents,
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other
forms of information technology. Comments submitted in response to this
notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for OMB
approval of this information collection.
The summaries below describe the nature of the information
collection requirements (ICRs) and the expected burden. The
requirements are being submitted for clearance by OMB as required by
the PRA.
Title: Transit COVID-19 Response Program.
OMB Control Number: 2132-TBD.
Type of Request: Request for emergency approval of an information
collection.
Abstract: COVID-19 continues to pose significant challenges for the
transit industry. Numerous transit providers have suspended service and
a greater number have reduced service. Yet, throughout the COVID-19
public health emergency, transit agencies across the country continue
to provide millions of trips to lifeline services, including
transporting healthcare personnel and other essential workers on the
front line of the Nation's COVID-19 response. Transit agencies also
offer additional essential services to support communities during the
public health emergency, such as meal delivery and Wi-Fi access in
underserved areas, and have begun offering transportation to
vaccination sites. Accordingly, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
Security Agency designates transit workers as essential critical
infrastructure workers.
Transit agencies and other stakeholders have expressed concerns
about the risk of COVID-19 to the transit industry and, along with the
FTA, have taken steps to address these concerns. Numerous transit
agencies have implemented mitigations to limit the transmission of
SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, among their workers and
within their systems. Despite these efforts, frontline transit workers
remain at high risk for work-related exposure to SARS-CoV-2 because
their work-related duties must be performed on-site and involve being
in close proximity (<6 feet) to the public or to coworkers. In
addition, many transit workers fall within racial and socioeconomic
demographics that are at increased risk of getting sick and dying from
COVID-19.
In December 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued
Emergency Use Authorizations for two COVID-19 vaccines. Most States
have prioritized distribution of the vaccine to their populations
consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendations on
the allocation of COVID-19 vaccines during the first phase of vaccine
delivery (Phase 1). Essential workers, including transit workers, are
recommended for vaccination in Phase 1b after health care personnel and
long term care facility residents. However, FTA's review of State
vaccination plans indicates that many States have prioritized transit
workers differently than CDC/ACIP guidance and placed another group
ahead of transit workers. States have
[[Page 13016]]
already begun distributing COVID-19 vaccine doses to high-risk groups,
including frontline workers. It may take many months before all
frontline transit workers can be vaccinated, though their communities
will continue to rely on them to provide critical transportation
services every day--including transportation to vaccination sites.
On January 21, 2021, President Biden issued E.O. 13998, ``to save
lives and allow all Americans, including the millions of people
employed in the transportation industry, to travel and work safely,''
requiring immediate Federal action to mandate masks on public forms of
transportation, including transit. On January 29, 2021, the CDC issued
an Order requiring the wearing of masks by travelers, including on
public transportation, to prevent spread of the virus that causes
COVID-19. The CDC Order requires transportation operators to require
that all persons wear masks when boarding, disembarking, and for the
duration of travel, with certain exemptions. Operators of
transportation hubs, which include bus terminals and subway stations,
must require all persons wear a mask when entering or on the premises
of a transportation hub. Subsequently, the Transportation Security
Administration (TSA) issued a Security Directive on February 1, 2021
that implements the CDC Order.
The FTA plays a critical role in providing risk-based guidance and
support for the COVID-19 recovery efforts of the transit industry.
Accordingly, the FTA will require that respondents provide the
following information using a fillable electronic online application:
Transit Worker Counts: Total number of transit operators, other
frontline essential personnel, and other workers during the reporting
period.
COVID-19 Impacts on Transit Agency Service Levels: Yes or no
responses to indicate if the agency suspended service, reduced service,
or operated at normal levels during the reporting period.
COVID-19 Impacts on Transit Workforce: Cumulative counts of transit
worker COVID-19 positives, fatalities, recoveries, and unvaccinated
employees during the reporting period, and yes or no responses on
whether the agency is requiring workers to be vaccinated, whether the
agency has implemented the CDC Order and TSA Security Directive
requiring workers and passengers to wear masks.
Respondents: FTA will require this information, pursuant to 49
U.S.C. 5334, from recipients and sub-recipients of FTA funds under the
Urbanized Area Formula Funding program (49 U.S.C. 5307) or the Formula
Grants for Rural Areas program (49 U.S.C. 5311) that operate transit
systems or pass through funds to sub-recipients that operate transit
systems. Recipients of FTA funds under the Enhanced Mobility of Seniors
and Individuals with Disabilities program (49 U.S.C. 5310) are
requested to provide this information on a voluntary basis.
Estimated Average Total Annual Respondents: 2,390 respondents.
Estimated Average Total Responses: 28,680.
Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 10,356.
Estimated Annual Burden per Response: 5 minutes per Section 5307 or
5311 respondent, 200 minutes per Section 5311 State respondent, and 8
minutes per Section 5310 transit operator respondent.
Frequency: Biweekly to monthly through December 31, 2021, or the
duration of the COVID-19 public health emergency, whichever comes
first.
Nadine Pembleton,
Director Office of Management Planning.
[FR Doc. 2021-04598 Filed 3-4-21; 8:45 am]
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